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USOC Sponsors Lobby IOC Not To Eliminate Olympic Sports

Some of the U.S. Olympic Committee’s (USOC) biggest sponsors have sent letters to International Olympic Committee (IOC) President Jacques Rogge, asking to keep baseball, softball and modern pentathlon in the Summer Olympic Games.

USOC President Marty Mankamyer said, “I am cautiously optimistic. We figure that if we were going to lose, we were going to lose going down every way we could”.

The IOC is expected to vote whether to keep the three sports in the Olympics when it meets next month in Mexico City. The IOC program commission has recommended adding golf and rugby in their place. Any changes will go into effect at the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing.

Mankamyer said, “the idea is not ill-conceived that you should limit the size of the Games and the expense to the cities. That is a good, sound business (decision). But they may not have thought it through”.

Rogge has said sports should be included based on, among other things, their popularity, universal appeal, cost and diversity. But Mankamyer said the IOC might have gotten bad information in determining that softball, baseball and modern pentathlon didn’t meet those criteria.

He said there are other ways to reduce the size of the Games by limiting the number of support personnel like the personal trainers and psychologists that accompany some athletes.

One criticism of baseball is that its biggest stars don’t participate because the season overlaps with the Olympics.

Mankamyer said, “major league baseball has been very supportive. They think with a shortened format, they would be able to try and get some of their headliners”.

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